Novak Djokovic of Serbia, left, and Joao Fonseca of Brazil hug after their third round men's singles tennis match at the French Open tennis tournament in Paris, Friday, May 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

PARIS — With two-time reigning champion Carlos Alcaraz absent, Jannik Sinner was expected to capture his first French Open crown this year. Instead, the top-ranked Italian lost in the second round, leaving the men’s draw wide open.

Three-time champion Novak Djokovic was the most experienced contender left in the field, chasing a record 25th major title. But the 39-year-old Serb will have to wait until Wimbledon after losing a five-set thriller to 19-year-old Brazilian Joao Fonseca on Friday.

The result may not have been so surprising because Djokovic came into the tournament with questions over his form after losing to a Croatian qualifier at the Italian Open, his only clay-court warmup event after two months out with a right shoulder injury.

Alexander Zverev

He will likely think this is best chance of winning his first major title. The 2024 runner-up to Alcaraz has also advanced to three semifinals and another quarterfinal in Paris. The 29-year-old German is in excellent form after reaching the final in Madrid and the semifinals in Monte Carlo and Munich. The second-seeded Zverev advanced to the fourth round with a four-set win late Friday over Frenchman Quentin Halys.

Felix Auger-Aliassime

At No. 4, the Canadian is the highest seed left in the top half of the draw and will take on Brandon Nakashima in the third round. Auger-Aliassime was two points away from defeat in the first round before rallying past Daniel Altmaier in five sets. He then got past Roman Andres Burruchaga in four sets. Auger-Aliassime’s best result at Roland Garros was the fourth round in 2022 and 2024.

Rafael Jodar

He is the latest tennis sensation from Spain. The 19-year-old Jodar is into the fourth round at a major for the first time after his five-set win over Alex Michelsen. Jodar claimed his first ATP title in Marrakech last month then made it to the semifinals in Barcelona and the quarterfinals in Madrid and Rome. His tour-level record on clay is 18-3. By comparison, 14-time Roland Garros champion Rafael Nadal and Alcaraz both went 13-7 through their first 20 tour-level matches on clay.

Moise Kouame

Can the French teenager create a major surprise and emulate Yannick Noah, the last Frenchman to win at Roland Garros in 1983? Kouame reached the third round after a five-set, five-hour thriller that delighted the French crowd. The No. 318-ranked player next faces Chilean Alejandro Tabilo. Kouame beat Marin Cilic in straight sets in the first round, becoming the first man born in 2008 or later to win a Grand Slam match.

Casper Ruud

Ruud lost the 2022 final to Nadal and the 2023 final to Djokovic. The Norwegian has struggled in the Paris heat this week and needed five sets to prevail in the first round. Ruud faces Tommy Paul of the United States in the third round.

Joao Fonseca

He has to be added to the list after a brilliant comeback win against arguably the best men’s player of all time. Fonseca became the first teenager to defeat the Serbian at a Grand Slam event. He is into the fourth round at a major for the first time.

Vallejo fined

for sexist remarks

PARIS — Adolfo Daniel Vallejo will receive a significant fine for his “sexist remarks” at the French Open after he said his second-round match should not have been umpired by a woman.

Vallejo lost to French teenager Moise Kouame on Thursday after a tense five-set battle that lasted nearly five hours on Court Suzanne-Lenglen.

“This sort of match needs to be umpired by a man,” Vallejo told Clay magazine after his 6-3, 7-5, 3-6, 2-6, 7-6 (8) loss. “It’s very difficult for a woman to do it.”

His comments were “unacceptable,” the French Tennis Federation and Roland Garros organizers said on Friday.

Organizers did not say how much the fine would be, but players reaching the second round at the French Open receive $151,000.

Kouame was down 5-3 in the fifth set and down 8-7 in the tiebreaker. The French crowd was boisterous and Vallejo, from Paraguay, said the umpire, Ana Carvalho from Brazil, did not control the spectators.